2 Alligators Shot Dead After Ripping off a Man’s Leg; How Aggressive Are Gators?

Two alligators got killed, and a Florida man lost a portion of his leg after an unprovoked attack. Fortunately, the man survived.

Alligators Got Killed in Florida After Attacking a Man

A 72-year-old man lost one of his legs from the knee down after an alligator attacked him at Great Outdoors RV and Golf Resort in Titusville Friday, according to NBC affiliate WESH and CBS affiliate WKMG-TV.

According to Brevard County Fire Rescue (BCFR) officials, the beast pulled the man's leg off. The incident was reported to authorities before 2 p.m., Florida Today said.

According to WESH, officers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and the Brevard County Sheriff's Office discovered an alligator with a human foot protruding from its mouth.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) officers shot two alligators dead following the encounter. They fired four shots, and pools of blood surfaced. A second smaller gator surfaced, and they shot it dead too.

Wildlife officers recovered the man's foot and some of his leg once the offending alligator was on land. They carried the carcasses of both alligators into a car and drove them away.

According to officials, the bigger of the two alligators attacked the older man. They are looking into the incident right now.

The victim survived the near-death attack and was airlifted to a hospital in Melbourne, where a portion of his injured leg was amputated. His wife and dog were unharmed, Daily Mail reported.

Local homeowner Ron Peoples revealed to WESH how near to residences the alligators were. According to him, they are in a spot where alligators may easily lie on the bank with a 15-foot distance between the house and the water.

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How Aggressive Are Alligators?

According to South Carolina Species Information, alligators are usually not aggressive toward humans. Unprovoked attacks by alligators smaller than 5 feet are not expected. However, they have unusual behavior.

Alligators under 8 feet long often only bite once.

The majority of bites happen in Florida, which recorded 340 assaults between 1948 and 2006, of which 17 were deadly to people.

There are reports of attacks in South Carolina, Louisiana, Texas, Georgia, and Alabama as well. Most attacks are rarely lethal, but one-third result in serious injury, recurrent bites, or even death.

Alligators longer than 8 feet typically make severe and persistent attacks. Death occurs due to suffocation or drowning.

The outlet noted that alligators being fed by humans often become aggressive, so they must be removed. In a previous report from Science Times, a couple was called out after a video of them feeding alligators went viral.

Feeding alligators is against the law. People are discouraged from feeding gators as the reptile may associate humans with food and approach them.

Alligators are hazardous creatures since they are natural predators and carnivores. Alligators try to avoid conflict, especially with humans, and are normally calm creatures, per Wild Explained. As a result, alligators rarely attack people when they are not provoked, but they do so occasionally.

Earlier this year, an 11-foot gator attacked an unsuspecting 85-year-old woman nearby a lake outside Spanish Lakes Fairways. The gator reportedly dragged the elderly to her death. The beast was later captured and euthanized.